Emerald Triangle: The Marijuana Grapes Of Wrath

As Californian’s watch the cessation of hundreds of medical marijuana collectives across the state, thanks to the unlawful suppression of the federal government on medical marijuana collectives and their growers, the emerald triangle now faces a 1930’s style – marijuana “grapes of wrath”.

Now that marijuana cultivators in the Humboldt, Trinity and Mendocino area are forced to come to terms with end of the Mendocino Counties “99 program,” and the outright attack by the fed’s on the states MMJ industry at large. The local North Coast cultivators and all that they have supported are required to reevaluate their career options going forward, as they deal with their unsold buds. This overabundance of marijuana is the direct result from growers lack of ability to sell their weed, as such the multitudes of would be growers, trimmers, crew bosses, grow shops, restaurants, and all that consider the MMJ growers economic input — as vital to their livelihood, have suffered an economic blow to the mid-section.

Long before CA Prop 215 was approved in 1996, would be pot trimmers, have made the long pilgrimage to the promised land of the “green” growing fields located in the emerald triangle. In the good old days, a marijuana manicurist could hope to get paid as much as $200 a lb. for being able to fastidiously trim marijuana at a frantic clip, this being just one of the many chores that must be accomplished before shipping the flower off to the collectives state wide.

Well that’s all changed thanks to the Fed’s; just ask “Forrest,” a bleach blonde kid from the mid-west, who had made the long exodus from Michigan to “Grow Pot” and who is now getting ready to pack it up and go home. Forrest sates that trimming is monotonous drudgery and isn’t worth his effort on a per lb. basis…”dudes are only paying $100 a pound man”.

“Shoot Bro – I work for Herb.” “Forrest”, who declined to throw down his actual birth name, went on to lament about his last manicuring gig. “I might as well feed it to my chickens…it’s compost. And I sure as shit I ain’t driving this anywhere. I don’t want their heat [the feds] ”

The area’s weed related population growth witnessed a rapid acceleration over the last couple of years as would be pot trimmers were enticed to the area by media reports about the local marijuana industry’s explosion. This during a time of economic malaise, was welcome national news and as the “green fever” seeded, visions of making some quick cash from working in the medical marijuana industry was cultivated. The new comers established marijuana grows in the national forests and in renovated rentals with high pressure sodium grow lights… and the game was afoot.

Good things rarely last… and this situation was no different. As the overloaded capacity of pot cultivators ignited, it accelerated a decline in pot prices. Weed that once sold for $4,500 a pound, then dropped to $2,500 a pound and as more collectives are forced to close, while production is still at an all-time high prices are set to continue their plunge.